Mine car coupling bar



July 11, 195o P. LAUKUS, SR

MINE CAR COUPLING BAR 2 sheets-sheet 1 Filed Oct. 15. 1946 I INVENOR. I3 51.11 I.. aukun BY K l ATTORN EYS4 July 11, 1950 p, LAUKUS, SR 2,514,710

MINE CAR COUPLING BAR l Filed Oct. 15, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 5.

WAIIIIII rAIIIIII z2 A l INVENTOR. Paul Laukus Em ATTORNEYS.

Patented July 11, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,514,710. I l MINE CAR COUPLING BAR PaulLaukus, Sr., North Huntington Township, Westmoreland.y County, Pa., assignor to Irwin Foundry and Mine Car Company, Irwin, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application. October 15, 1946, Serial No. 703,419

This invention relates to coupling bars for mine cars used as a safety measure, in addition to the usual types of coupling, and especially automatic couplers, and also useful during towing and rerailing operations.

The principal object of the invention is to provide a coupling bar which is inexpensive to to manufacture, easily attached to mine cars, durable, and which tends to avoid injury to workmen in and about mines.

Where mine cars are taken into or removed from a mine by way of a slope or where numerous grades are encountered, there is always the danger of coupler failure, thereby causing a hazard to mine workmen and mine property. To guard against this, it has been common practice to supplement the usual types of couplers with safety chains detachably connected to adjacent cars, at their ends. These chains are not drawn taut, unless the cars start to separate due to coupler failure. It has been common practice to secure eye members to the car bodies at their ends and adjacent their sides for detachably receiving the ends of the safety chains. In the past accidents have occurred due to work-v men using these projecting eye members as steps when getting into or out of the cars or as platforms, and slipping from same while the cars are in motion. It is another object of the invention to so locate the coupling bars With respect to the car body ends, that the eye portions cannot well be used as steps or platforms and thus tend to induce workmen not to get on and off cars while in motion and not to ride on the cars between the ends of adjacent cars.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear in the following description of the preferred embodiment of the invention, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and in which drawings:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an elongate piece of metal of right angulark cross section, providing flanges, from which a coupling bar made according to the present invention may be fabricated.

Fig. 2 is perspective view of the piece of metal shown in Fig. 1 drilled with holes in one of the flanges, for attachment of the coupling bar to the car, and having the other flange cut transversally from its free edge to its juncture with the rst mentioned flange so as to divide the' second mentioned flange into a major intermediate portion and two minor end portions.

4 claims. (C1. 213-78) Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the completed coupling bar, inverted to disclose details.

Figs. 4 and 5 are fragmentary side elevational and plan views, respectively, showing a mine car equipped with the coupling bar.

Fig. y6 is a detailed View, partly in plan and partly in horizontal section showing the coupling bar attached to mine car body carried elements.

Fig. 7 is an enlarged sectional View on the line 'I 'I of Fig. 6.

In the drawings, portions of a typical mine car ofv large capacity, such as is illustrated in my copending application relating to railway car truck and body mountings, filed March 28, 1947, Serial No. 737,755, are shown, comprising a body I0 including an end wall II, side walls I2, `and a bottom I3 joined to the lower portions of the end and side walls, the body being mounted on a truck I4; a coupler housing I5 including spaced channel members I6 extending longitudinally of and beneath the bottom I3 symmetrically disposed to each side thereof, these members I5 extending to or adjacent the plane of the car end wall II;l and a coupler I8 comprising a coupler head I9, coupler shank 29 therefor swingably mounted between the housing members I6 and a wear plate 2I secured to the housing I5 in any suitable manner and extending outwardly from the lower portion of the housing I5 at the end of the car, the shank 20 bearing upon the Wear plate 2i. It is understood that this is a conventional construction and arrangements of parts of a mine car an are shown merely by way of example.

To this, or any similar construction of mine car, I apply a coupling bar 22 for supplemental coupling of adjacent cars in a train as by use of a chain or other flexible member, or for use in towing or re-railing of the car as by a tow line, and which may also be used to cooperate with brace means 23 associated with a coupling bar 22 and wear plate 2|. f The coupling bar 'is preferably formed of a single piece of metal and fabricated from sheet l material or rolled metal stock shaped to provide a first flange 24, and a second flange 25 in right angular relation to one another at a juncture portion 26 as shown in Fig. 1. It is preferred to fabricate and shape this stock so that the flange 24' provides a major intermediate ange portion 21, and from minor end portions 23 of the flange 24, shown in Fig. 2, parts of terminal eye portions 29 at the ends of the second fiange 25, as shown in Fig. 3. This is preferably accomplished by providing two slits 3l] in flange 24 extending from its free edge to the juncture portion 26,

` the rear portion of the -Wear plate 2 l.

`the slits being spaced apart suicient to leave the major intermediate flange portion 21, then hammering and shaping .the stock to providethe terminal Yeye portions29 Which each have, a hole` 3| therein made by a mandrel held by a hammer, not shown in the drawings.

This method of fabricating the coupling bar is disclosed and claimed in my copending applicastrength to resist pull, shockand-torsional strains or stresses, and to also assist in bracing the wear plate 2|. Suitable holes 32 may also be ,provided in the flange 25 for securing'the coupling bar to body carried parts of the mine car.

In the example shown, the coupling bar is secured transversally to the undersides of the members I6, with the flange 25, engaging there,- beneath, as by rivets 33, and close toor engaging The coupling bar is preferably of such length asv to span the. space-between the members I6, extend under the latter and dispose the eye'portions 29 just outside theplanes of the members lr6 as shown in Fig.r where they are located inwardly of and remote from the planes of the sidewalls l2 of the car body ID.

The :brace means'23fmaytc0mpls 010k 01T mOre gusset plates 34, welded tothe underside of wear platevv2l and dependngintermediate flange portion 21 as shown in Figs. 4 and 5. It is understood that the eyeportions may receive hooks of chains .or other iiexible members used as supplemental coupling means, or of tow bars, chains and in contradistinction to the common practice of securingindividual .eye members adjacent to the planes :of the sidewalls `I2 where theygare frequently usedas steps or platforms.

It will be noted from Fig. 'l that if the coupling bar is made in accordance with the above described method, a portion v35 of each terminal eye is material from the juncture portion 2-6 of the original stock, and is located where ithepull on the eye is most apt to come if there is main coupler vfailure or during towing or re-railing operations.` This portion 35 is well adapted to resist .distorsion ,or fracture.

While I have disclosed the preferred embodiment of the invention it is to be understood `that changes may be made in details, proportions, etc,

without departing from the spirit of the invenv a bottom yjoined to the lower portions of said end and side walls, of a coupling bar ,rigid Withthe car body, extending transversally of and beneath the car body adjacent the plane of the end wall thereof, said coupling bar provided with terminal eye portions located inwardly of and remote from the planes of the car body side walls and in spaced apart relation to said end wall and bottom.

2. In combination with a mine car including a body provided with an end wall, ay bottom and spaced members beneath the bottom and eX- tending longitudinally of the body to adjacent vthe planeofsaid end wall, of a coupling bar secured to the under sides of said spaced members transversally thereof beneath the end of the car body, said .bar providingl with terminal eye portionsl'aterally outside the planes of said longitudinally spaced apart members of the car body and in spaced apart relation to said end wall and bottom.

3. In combination with a mine car including a body provided with an end wall and a bottom, a couplinghousingv including spaced members beneath the car bottom extending longitudinally thereof,anda couplingY including acoupler shank accommodated between said spaced members of the housing, of a coupling bar for use in supplemental coupling of cars, secured to the under sides of -said spaced housingv members, transversally thereof beneath the end of the car body, said. bar provided with terminal eye portions laterally outside the planes of said spaced housing membersand in spaced apart relation to said end wallv and bottom.

4. A mine car including a body provided with ari-end walland a bottom, a coupling housing including spaced members beneath the car bottomextending longitudinally thereof, a coupling including a coupler shank swingably mounted between saidhousingy members, and a wear plate beneath and upon which said shank engages, locatedadjacent the ends of said housing membersY a coupling bar of rangular cross section for usei n supplementalI coupling of cars, located transyersallyl beneath said housing members and including an upper horizontal flange secured to .the-latter, a- -lower'vertical ange beneath said wear plate 4and terminal eye portions on said upper-flangeoutside4 the planes of4 said spaced housing membersand'in spaced lapart relation to said end, wall and bottom,A and brace means betweenthe underside of said Wear plate and lsaid vertical, flange of the coupling bar.

" PAUL LAUKUssR.

CTED

The-following references are of record in the le Qfrthis` patent.:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

